Control Potential of Multiple Nucleopolyhedrovirus (SfMNPV) Isolated from Fall Armyworm in Nigeria (West Africa)
by
, , and
Ghislain T. Tepa-Yotto
1,2,*
,
Ouorou Kobi Douro-Kpindou
1,
Précieux Sèna Bonaventure Koussihouédé
1,
Abissi Marc Adjaoké
3,
Jeannette K. Winsou
1,
Ghislain Tognigban
3 and
Manuele Tamò
1 1
Biorisk Management Facility (BIMAF), International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA-Benin), Cotonou 08-01000, Benin
2
Ecole de Gestion et de Production Végétale et Semencière (EGPVS), Université Nationale d’Agriculture (UNA), Kétou 43, Benin
3
Ecole Doctorale des Sciences Agronomiques et de l’Eau (EDSAE), Université Nationale d’Agriculture (UNA), Kétou 43, Benin
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Insects 2024, 15(4), 225; https://doi.org/10.3390/insects15040225
Submission received: 6 December 2023
/
Revised: 14 March 2024
/
Accepted: 19 March 2024
/
Published: 26 March 2024
(This article belongs to the Section Insect Pest and Vector Management)
Simple Summary
The fall armyworm (FAW) Spodoptera frugiperda is an invasive pest that causes damage to several crops including maize, its preferred host plant. Initial outbreaks of the pest on the African continent were recorded in early 2016. A variety of management options were explored in Africa to control the pest. The use of biopesticides and biological control was one of them. The current study aimed at measuring the susceptibility of FAW larvae to an entomopathogenic virus, SfMNPV, isolated from Nigeria (West Africa). The findings proved that the new SfMNPV isolate from Nigeria (SfMNPV-KA1) is more effective than its exotic counterpart from Argentina (SfMNPV-ARG), paving the way for bioinsecticide use to control the fall armyworm in Africa.
Abstract
The fall armyworm (FAW) Spodoptera frugiperda (Lepidoptera, Noctuidae) has now become an invasive pest of global concern. The pest was first detected in Central and Western Africa in early 2016. Sustainable management options explored by stakeholders during early FAW invasion in Africa included the use of biopesticides and biological control. The current study aimed to compare the susceptibility of FAW larvae to SfMNPV with the assumption that the virus isolated from FAW populations in Africa has higher virulence compared with an isolate from Argentina (SfMNPV-ARG). We also hypothesized that host plant plays a role in SfMNPV efficacy and that cannibalism mediates horizontal and vertical transmission of the virus. This work provides pioneering data on the virulence of the new SfMNPV isolate from Nigeria (SfMNPV-KA1), which proved more effective than its exotic counterpart from Argentina (SfMNPV-ARG). The host plant effect made a significant difference between maize and onion with more FAW death in the larvae fed with contaminated onion 5 days post treatment. The study demonstrates and discusses the effect of cannibalism on virus transmission.
Keywords:
entomopathogen; virulence; concentration; host plant; cannibalism
